Way to Go! Kellenberg student named Volunteer of the Year
Jessica Lee, a senior at Kellenberg Memorial High School in Uniondale, has been named the Volunteer of the Year by the Long Island Junior Soccer League. Credit: U.S. Youth Soccer/Jordan Gracey
A student at Kellenberg Memorial High School in Uniondale has been named the Volunteer of the Year by the Long Island Junior Soccer League.
Jessica Lee, a senior, has received the league's Marg McGory TOPSoccer Volunteer of the Year Award, which is named for a longtime advocate for special-needs individuals.
Lee, who has played soccer since she was three, plays for the league's Garden City Park Shooting Stars and on the varsity soccer team at Kellenberg, where she served as captain this past fall season. She has also been involved for nine years with the West Hempstead Chiefs Soccer Club, which her family founded.
"I believe that all kids should have the same opportunities in life," Lee, 17, said. "TOPSoccer helps make that happen. Seeing the players every week and their faces full of excitement, ready to play soccer, never fails to put a smile on my face."
TOPSoccer is a community-based program for children and young adults with physical and intellectual challenges. Lee has previously been named TOPSoccer Buddy of the Year by U.S. Youth Soccer, the Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association, and the East Region.
Lee is a "very poised, great young lady, who gives her heart and soul to her community and to the TOPSoccer players there," said Steve Padaetz, managing director of the Long Island Junior Soccer League.
— MICHAEL R. EBERT
Michael R. Ebert is an education researcher and has worked for Newsday in various capacities since 2003. He was part of an 11-person team named as 2008 Pulitzer Prize finalists for investigative coverage of the LIRR's platform safety issues.
